San Gorgonio Mountain
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| San Gorgonio Mountain | |
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| Elevation | 11,499 feet (3,505 m) |
| Location | California, USA |
| Range | San Bernardino Mountains |
| Prominence | 8,294 feet (2,528 m) [1] |
| Coordinates | Coordinates: |
| Topo map | USGS San Gorgonio Mountain |
| First ascent | 1872 by W. A. Goodyear and Mark Thomas |
| Easiest route | Hike |
| Translation | Saint Gorgonius (Spanish) |
San Gorgonio Mountain (or Mount San Gorgonio, or Old Greyback) is the highest peak in Southern California at 11,499 feet (3,505 m) above sea level. It is located in the San Bernardino Mountains, 27 mi (42 km) east of the city of San Bernardino and 12 mi (19 km) north-northeast of San Gorgonio Pass. It lies in the San Gorgonio Wilderness, part of the San Bernardino National Forest. Spanish missionaries in the area during the early 1800s named the peak after Saint Gorgonius.
Since it is the highest point in a region which is separated from higher peaks (e.g. in the Sierra Nevada) by relatively low terrain, San Gorgonio Mountain is one of the most topographically prominent peaks in the United States. It is ranked 7th among peaks in the contiguous US, and 18th among all US peaks.[2]
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[edit] Hiking
Several trails lead to the broad summit of San Gorgonio Mountain, which rises only a few hundred feet (100 m) above the tree line. Any route requires well over 4,000 feet (1,220 m) of elevation gain.
There is however one less used trail leading from the Fish Creek Trailhead to San Gorgonio Mountain that has about 3400' of gain, far less than the 4,600'–5,200' of gain on the standard routes from the South Fork and Vivian Creek trailheads.
[edit] Aircraft wreckage
On November 28, 1952 a Douglas C-47 Dakota, serial number 45-1124, crashed at the 10,400 feet (3,200 m) elevation on the eastern face of San Gorgonio Mountain. The C-47 was enroute from Offut Air Force Base, Nebraska to March Air Force Base near Riverside, California when it struck the mountain at night in the middle of storm. Thirteen people died in the accident.[3]
Nearly one month after the C-47 accident a Marine Corps helicopter crashed on the mountain in coordination of the efforts of recovering the victims. The three crewmen of the helicopter survived the impact.[4] The wreckage of the two aircraft remain on the mountain and are accessible via the Fish Creek Trailhead.
[edit] References
- ^ San Gorgonio Mountain on Peakbagger.com; Key col elevation at 3,205 ft, in Soledad Pass at
- ^ US ultra-prominent peaks on peaklist.org
- ^ [1]
- ^ News Releases
[edit] See also
- List of highest points in California by county
- Mountain peaks of California
- Mountain peaks of North America
- Mountain peaks of the United States
